USA - We Belong Here has been uniting EDM lovers on Miami's Virginia Key Beach for the past three years, and has now hosted its first-ever festival experience in New York City amid Central Park’s lush greenery and panoramic skyline views.
Held October 4-6 at historic Wollman Rink, design collective Datum Creative built a fully immersive 360° experience for festival-goers, including a stunning visual tribute to the city’s skyline using Elation Pulse Bar strobe and effect lights.
The We Belong Here festival, known for offering an intimate, distraction-free music experience with its ‘no video’ policy, provided Datum Creative the opportunity to design a stage that was as visually impactful as the panoramic views surrounding it. On the southern end of Central Park, the lighting and production team utilised a series of 26 staggered truss towers lined with Pulse Bars to mimic the striking verticality of the New York skyline.
Datum Creative has a fresh approach to creative production and wanted to do more than simply mirror the surrounding high-rises. “We didn’t want to just copy the skyline, but rather give it a nod,” said David Singleton, creative director at Datum Creative, production and lighting designers for the event. “We’re based in New York, so we often went on-site with pen and paper to sketch out designs – that’s how it was originally conceived.”
With performances by headliners Kaskade, FISHER, and Monolink, along with other acts, the event’s signature 360° stage allowed attendees to encircle the stage and fully immerse themselves in the festival’s atmosphere. “You’re not just looking at the stage all the time but moving through the space,” says Singleton. “We created a truss circle system with custom 40ft diameter roof that organisers will now use on all We Belong Here shows.” Gracing the circle truss were Elation Proteus Maximus and Proteus Rayzor 760 fixtures.
“Our approach was all about creating something dynamic that could work both day and night,” adds Singleton. “You’re not going to see any beams until it is dark, so we thought of how we could do something interesting visually that would also work during the day. That’s where the Pulse Bars came into play. We were amazed by the brightness – even in full daylight – which made them perfect for daytime sets. We ran effects pixel for pixel, using about 78 universes to create layers of effects that were visible throughout the day and into the night.”
The staggered heights of the truss towers (the tallest at 24ft), filled with Pulse Bars, wrapped around the stage in a 180° array that followed the natural shape of the rink itself. “Their versatility – whether used as blinders, strobes, or simple background lighting – was key to maintaining the aesthetic of the show throughout the entire day.”
In collaboration with Technical Arts Group (TAG), the lighting vendor for the project, Datum Creative used 120 Pulse Bars, both long and short versions, to achieve their vision. The gear’s IP65 rating ensured that all lighting fixtures could withstand outdoor elements, a crucial factor given the event's rain-or-shine policy.
“The Pulse Bars have quickly become a flagship of our rental inventory,” stated TAG owner Kevin Mignone. “Their brightness, available effects, and quickly adjustable mounting system make them a great product to have for our use and to offer our clients over other 1M bars in the market right now. With already a large inventory of both Pulse L and Pulse S, we are planning to double that inventory going into our 2025 events season in Q1.”
TAG provided all production materials for the show, including the sound, lighting, staging, and structure, along with all lead department staff. “With only 60 hours from trucks unloading to the first guest entering the venue, we needed to make sure we had a 24-hour team of leadership there getting things built and completed quickly and efficiently,” Mignone comments. “Our team spent weeks leading up to the show in prep and pre-production, fine-tuning every detail of the schedule and gear to ensure the deployment could happen within the timeframe we had.”
“It was truly an amazing show in a great setting,” Singleton concludes. “The promoters were thrilled with the result, and we’re looking forward to working on their next event in Miami this March. It’s always rewarding to partner with companies like TAG and use high-quality gear like Elation’s, which allows us to execute our vision at the highest level.”
